OurLostMemory
by Simpler
Summary: Post Rebirth


'Our Lost Memory'  
  
-Simpler-  
  
At 10:15 am, the train departs promptly from the station in Munich. In 32 minutes it arrives in the city of Vienna, crossing 426.2 km, at an average speed of 799.1 km/ph. The passengers experience nothing but comfort, as this is the future innovation of mass transportation.  
  
It's at the border between the provinces of Germany and Austria, the vision of the EU having been completed, that I first noticed the man. He sat staring out the window with small black plugs in either ear, an audio player in the palm of his hand, and a shoulder bag laying in the empty seat next to him.  
  
I wouldn't have noticed him, he having aged considerably, had it not been for the boyish flop of his hair. Hair that matched that of a fourteen year- old boy, trapped in a photograph that circulated a few years after the rebirth. Though it wasn't until I saw his eyes, ponds of a sensitive blue, that I knew it was him for sure.  
  
I had left my seat and was standing in the aisle next to the open seat beside him, waiting for his attention. He continued staring out the window. I had heard stories of people trying to track him down. Journalists, scientists, government officials. Years after the rebirth, the new governments and their agencies began uncovering information of what had happened. Fragments of documents referring to a 'Project E,' impacts and angels. It was cryptic, much of the information encoded or destroyed. One thing that came out was this boy, Ikari Shinji. He seemed to factor into it all. His picture was found and released, and a worldwide search began.  
  
When they found him the first time, he was in a small fishing village on the coast of Sakhalin. A team was assembled and sent to interview the young man. They brought with them, some of the initial fragments of information they had uncovered, and asked the young man to assist them in their attempt to understand what had happened. The impacts and angels. The young man said he didn't know how he could be of assistance, he couldn't remember anything from before the rebirth. The team decided that Ikari, like all those who had returned, seemed to have lost the majority, if not his entire memory prior to rebirth.  
  
Initially the team decided not to pursue the Ikari matter any further at the time and elected to return home. A report by one of the team's psychiatrists rekindled hope in the young man:  
  
". . .Mr. Ikari stated he held no recollection of the programs and information provided to him. . .he could neither confirm nor deny the information recovered thus far. . .Mr. Ikari did, however, appear slightly upset by the photographs of himself and the other children thought to be involved in 'Project E' . . .  
  
This report, coupled with new information that suggested that not only were the children involved in 'Project E,' but played a larger role in the project than previously thought, lead to the formation of a second team sent to interview Ikari Shinji.  
  
It was the intention of the second team to bring Mr. Ikari back to old Japan, by force if necessary, upon the team's determination as to whether Ikari's presence would benefit the investigation. Having arrived in Sakhalin, Ikari sat through the team's new findings and again stated he did not see how he could be of help to them. The team disagreed and asked him to return to Japan with them. Ikari denied this request. The team decided against provoking him any further that night. When the team woke in the morning, Ikari was gone. The team searched the village and the neighboring area, but to no avail.  
  
Ikari's disappearance only added to speculation that he did perhaps have memories from before the rebirth. Rumors began spreading inside and outside of the agency. The second manhunt was underway, and it would be years before they found him again.  
  
28 years post rebirth, on a train from Munich to Vienna, I was standing in front of a man who had managed to elude the eyes of the world for years at a time, on numerous occasions. Years that added to the myth of a boy named Ikari. Years that saw several people step forward claiming to be the real Ikari Shinji, or to reports of others having spotted Ikari all over the globe.  
  
I couldn't decide whether the blue of his eyes had darkened with age or remained unchanged. When I tapped his shoulder to gain his attention, his gaze broke from the window, a deep and distant meditation, and his eyes looked at me for the first time. He pulled the black plugs from his ears.  
  
"Do you mind if I sit here?" I asked. "The woman next to me fell asleep."  
  
He pulled his bag from the seat and placed it on the floor between his feet. I sat down next to him and offered my hand.  
  
"My name is Bergman."  
  
He shook my hand and nodded respectfully. He was silent, his nod spoke for him. He knew I had recognized him. We released hands and were silent for a moment.  
  
"You speak Japanese fairly well," he finally spoke.  
  
"Thank you," I replied. "I'm studying to become a diplomat." I wasn't sure why I had told him that.  
  
He nodded and then returned his gaze to out the window. I was afraid I was going to lose my chance, the moment he put the plugs in his ears, it would be gone.  
  
"I didn't realize they still made those," referring to the SDAT. He looked down at the player in his hand.  
  
"They don't. It's hard to find tapes for."  
  
"Your a musician?" I asked.  
  
"Hai."  
  
"I saw a man boarding with a cello case, that was you?"  
  
"Hai."  
  
"Is that why you were in Germany?"  
  
"Partly." He almost smiled.  
  
I didn't know how to read into it. I decided to continue.  
  
"You've been playing for a long time?"  
  
He nodded his head yes. We were both looking at one another again.  
  
"Did you play cello as a child. . ."  
  
Our eyes conveying the mutual recognition of the questions underlining significance.  
  
". . .They say people that return, don't really remember their lives before. . ."  
  
I trailed off. He was reading my eyes. His eyes were speaking to me.  
  
You really want to know . . . what everyone wants to know. . .  
  
He finally spoke. Calm and controlled. Turning to look back out the train window.  
  
"No. . . I remember. . . I did."  
  
I watched him stare out the window, in silence. The German voice of the conductor, announcing our arrival to Vienna, finally woke me from my gaze. I looked forward to the front of the car and began deboarding the train with the rest of the passengers. I stepped off the train and went to retrieve my suitcase from storage. From the corner of my eye, I thought I saw Ikari behind me, reaching for his cello. I turned around to see him, to wave or say good-bye, but he was gone. I circled around a few times, looking through the crowds of people, but he was gone.  
  
  
  
This Fan Fiction is based upon the anime Neon Genesis Evangelion and was inspired by the wonderfully dedicated FanFiction community, and Eva fans everywhere. I own neither the anime nor its fans, but do feel part of something greater, the Eva experience, which only grows and spreads with time.  
  
Simpler [www.geocities.com/ourlostmemory] 


End file.
